Ernst Louis I
Grand Duke of Hesse and by Rhine
Reign	13 March 1892-1918
Born	25 November 1868
	Darmstadt
Died	9 October 1937
Predecessor	Louis IV
Successor	Grand Duchy abolished
Consort	Princess Victoria Melita of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha Eleonore of Solms-Hohensolms-Lich
Issue	Princess Elisabeth Stillborn son Prince Georg Donatus Prince Louis
Royal House	House of Hesse-Darmstadt
Father	Louis IV
Mother	Princess Alice of the United Kingdom

Ernest Louis Charles Albert William (de: Ernst Ludwig Karl Albert Wilhelm), (25 November 1868-9 October 1937) was the last Grand Duke of Hesse and by Rhine from 1892 until his abdication in 1918. His nickname was Ernie. Image File history File links Ernst_Ludwig_von_Hessen_1905_Foto_Jacob_Hilsdorf. ... March 13 is the 72nd day of the year in the Gregorian calendar (73rd in leap years). ... 1892 (MDCCCXCII) was a leap year starting on Friday (see link for calendar). ... November 25 is the 329th (in leap years the 330th) day of the year in the Gregorian calendar. ... 1868 (MDCCCLXVIII) was a leap year starting on Wednesday (see link for calendar) of the Gregorian calendar or a leap year starting on Friday of the 12-day-slower Julian calendar. ... Darmstadt is a city in the Bundesland (federal state) of Hessen in Germany. ... October 9 is the 282nd day of the year (283rd in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... Year 1937 (MCMXXXVII) was a common year starting on Friday (link will take you to calendar). ... Ludwig IV, Grand Duke of Hesse and by Rhine Louis IV (Friedrich Wilhelm Ludwig Karl) (12 September 1837 - 13 March 1892), was the fourth Grand Duke of Hesse and by Rhine, reigning from 13 June 1877 until his death. ... Princess Victoria of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha (Victoria Melita) (25 November 1876 - 2 March 1936) was a member of the British Royal Family, a granddaughter of Queen Victoria. ... Princess Eleonore of Solms-Hohensolms-Lich (September 17, 1871 - November 16, 1937), was the second wife of Ernst-Ludwig, Grand Duke of Hesse and by Rhine and the mother of his two sons. ... Princess Elisabeth of Hesse (Elisabeth Marie Alice Victoria) (11 March 1895 - 6 November 1903) was the only daughter of Ernst Ludwig, Grand Duke of Hesse and by Rhine and his first wife, Princess Victoria Melita of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha. ... Georg Donatus, Hereditary Grand Duke of Hesse (1906-1937) was the first child of Ernest Louis, Grand Duke of Hesse and Eleonore of Solms-Braunfels. ... Prince Louis of Hesse and by Rhine (Ludwig Hermann Alexander Chlodwig, 20 November 1908 - 30 May 1968) was the youngest son of Ernest Louis, Grand Duke of Hesse. ... Hesse (Hessen in German) is a region of west-central Germany. ... Ludwig IV, Grand Duke of Hesse and by Rhine Louis IV (Friedrich Wilhelm Ludwig Karl) (12 September 1837 - 13 March 1892), was the fourth Grand Duke of Hesse and by Rhine, reigning from 13 June 1877 until his death. ... Princess Alice (Alice Maud Mary), (25 April 1843 – 14 December 1878), was a member of the British Royal Family, the third child and second daughter of Queen Victoria. ... German (called Deutsch in German; in German the term germanisch is equivalent to English Germanic), is a member of the western group of Germanic languages and is one of the worlds major languages. ... 1868 (MDCCCLXVIII) was a leap year starting on Wednesday (see link for calendar) of the Gregorian calendar or a leap year starting on Friday of the 12-day-slower Julian calendar. ... Year 1937 (MCMXXXVII) was a common year starting on Friday (link will take you to calendar). ... 1892 (MDCCCXCII) was a leap year starting on Friday (see link for calendar). ... 1918 (MCMXVIII) was a common year starting on Tuesday of the Gregorian calendar (see link for calendar) or a common year starting on Wednesday of the Julian calendar. ...

Ernest Louis was the fourth child and eldest son of Grand Duke Louis IV and Princess Alice of the United Kingdom, daughter of Victoria of the United Kingdom and Prince Albert of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha. He was an older brother to Alexandra of Hesse, Empress Consort of Nicholas II of Russia. Ludwig IV, Grand Duke of Hesse and by Rhine Louis IV (Friedrich Wilhelm Ludwig Karl) (12 September 1837 - 13 March 1892), was the fourth Grand Duke of Hesse and by Rhine, reigning from 13 June 1877 until his death. ... Princess Alice (Alice Maud Mary), (25 April 1843 – 14 December 1878), was a member of the British Royal Family, the third child and second daughter of Queen Victoria. ... Victoria (Alexandrina Victoria; 24 May 1819 – 22 January 1901) was the Queen of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland from 20 June 1837, and the first Empress of India from 1 May 1876, until her death on 22 January 1901. ... Prince Albert of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha (in full Francis Charles Augustus Albert Emmanuel) (26 August 1819 – 14 December 1861) was the husband and consort of Queen Victoria of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland. ... Princess Alix of Hesse, as Empress Alexandra Feodorovna of Russia (1872-1918) Her Grand Ducal Highness Princess Alix of Hesse and by Rhine (Alix Victoria Helena Louise Beatrice, 6 June 1872 - 17 July 1918), was the consort of Tsar Nicholas II of Russia, the last Tsar of Russia. ... King George V of the United Kingdom and his consort, Queen Mary A queen consort is the wife and consort of a reigning king. ... Nicholas II of Russia (18 May [O.S. 6 May] 1868 – 17 July [O.S. 4 July] 1918) (Russian: , Nikolay II) was the last Emperor of Russia, King of Poland,[1] and Grand Duke of Finland. ...

Ernest Louis's early life was shrouded with death. When he was five, his younger brother Friedrich died. The two boys had been playing a game in their mother's bedroom when the younger boy fell through an unlatched window onto the balcony twenty feet below. It was no great distance, and at first, Friedrich seemed only shaken. However, he suffered from hemophilia, and had begun bleeding on the brain. He lapsed into unconsciousness that afternoon and died. Ernest Louis was inconsolable. "When I die, you must die too, and all the others. Why can't we all die together? I don't want to die alone, like Frittie." He told his nurse. To his mother he said, "I dreamt that I was dead and was gone up to Heaven, and there I asked God to let me have Frittie again and he came to me and took my hand." The younger child's grave became a place of regular pilgrimage for the family, causing Ernest Louis to become obsessed with thoughts of death and dying alone. Prince Friedrich of Hesse and by Rhine (Friedrich Wilhelm August Victor Leopold Ludwig), (October 7, 1870 - May 29, 1873), was the haemophiliac second son of Ludwig IV, Grand Duke of Hesse and by Rhine and Princess Alice of the United Kingdom. ... Haemophilia or hemophilia is the name of any of several hereditary genetic illnesses that impair the bodys ability to control bleeding. ...

In 1878, an epidemic of diphtheria swept through Darmstadt. All of the children (except Princess Elisabeth, who was sent to stay with relatives) and their father fell ill. Princess Alice cared for her sick husband and children, but on November 15, the youngest of them, Princess May, died. Alice kept the news from her family for several weeks, until Ernest Louis, who was devoted to little May, asked for his sister. Ernest Louis was overcome with grief when his mother revealed May's death. In an effort to comfort her grieving son, Alice kissed him, and within a week, fell ill and soon died, on December 14. Her death was a burden that Ernest Louis bore for the rest of his life. 1878 (MDCCCLXXVIII) was a common year starting on Tuesday (see link for calendar). ... Darmstadt is a city in the Bundesland (federal state) of Hessen in Germany. ... Grand Duchess Elizabeth Fyodorovna Her Imperial Highness Grand Duchess Elizabeth Fyodorovna of Russia (Елизавета Фёдоровиа), née Her Grand Ducal Highness Princess Elisabeth Alexandra Luise Alice of Hesse-Darmstadt (1 November 1864–18 July 1918), was the wife of Grand Duke Sergei Alexandrovich of Russia, the fifth son of Emperor Alexander II... Her Grand Ducal Highness Princess Marie of Hesse and the Rhine (24 May 1874 - 16 November 1878) was the youngest daughter of Princess Alice of the United Kingdom and Ludwig IV, the Grand Duke of Hesse. ...

In 1892 Ernest Louis succeeded his father as Grand Duke. 1892 (MDCCCXCII) was a leap year starting on Friday (see link for calendar). ...

In 1894, Ernest Louis married his first cousin, Princess Victoria Melita of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha, ("Ducky") on 19 April 1894, on the encouragement of their mutual grandmother, Queen Victoria, but the marriage was not a happy one. They had two children, a daughter, Elisabeth, born in 1895, who died of typhoid fever at age eight, and a stillborn son, in 1900. The couple became estranged and Victoria Melita alleged that her husband was a homosexual: "No boy was safe, from the stable hands to the kitchen help. He slept quite openly with them all." The two were divorced December 21, 1901, on the grounds of "invincible mutual antipathy" by a special verdict of the Supreme Court of Hesse. 1894 (MDCCCXCIV) was a common year starting on Monday (see link for calendar). ... Princess Victoria of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha (Victoria Melita) (25 November 1876 - 2 March 1936) was a member of the British Royal Family, a granddaughter of Queen Victoria. ... April 19 is the 109th day of the year in the Gregorian calendar (110th in leap years). ... 1894 (MDCCCXCIV) was a common year starting on Monday (see link for calendar). ... Princess Elisabeth of Hesse (Elisabeth Marie Alice Victoria) (11 March 1895 - 6 November 1903) was the only daughter of Ernst Ludwig, Grand Duke of Hesse and by Rhine and his first wife, Princess Victoria Melita of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha. ... For a related disease which is caused by a different bacterium, see Paratyphoid fever. ... Since its coinage, the word homosexuality has acquired multiple meanings. ... December 21 is the 355th day of the year (356th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... 1901 (MCMI) was a common year starting on Tuesday (link will display calendar) of the Gregorian calendar (or a common year starting on Wednesday of the 13-day-slower Julian calendar). ...

Ernest Louis remarried in 1905 to Princess Eleonore of Solms-Hohensolms-Lich, with whom he had two sons:

• George Donatus of Hesse (1906-1937), who married Princess Cecilie of Greece (sister of Prince Philip, Duke of Edinburgh), and had issue.
• Louis of Hesse (1908-1968). Married Margaret Campbell Geddes, no issue. He adopted Moritz, Landgrave of Hesse as heir.

Throughout his life, Ernest Louis was a patron of the arts, founding the Darmstadt Artists' Colony, and was himself an author of poems, plays, essays, and piano compositions. Ernest Louis served in the German military during World War I, and was forced to abdicate along with the other German ruling princes at the end of the war in 1918. 1906 (MCMVI) was a common year starting on Monday (see link for calendar). ... Year 1937 (MCMXXXVII) was a common year starting on Friday (link will take you to calendar). ... Princess Cecilie of Greece and Denmark, Hereditary Grand Duchess of Hesse, was the older sister of Prince Philip, Duke of Edinburgh. ... The Prince Philip, Duke of Edinburgh, (Philip Mountbatten; born Prince Philippos of Greece and Denmark, 10 June 1921) is the husband and consort of Queen Elizabeth II. Originally a Prince of Greece and Denmark, Prince Philip abandoned those titles to serve in the Royal Navy of the United Kingdom, but... 1908 (MCMVIII) was a leap year starting on Wednesday (link will display the full calendar). ... 1968 (MCMLXVIII) was a leap year starting on Monday. ... HRH Moritz, Prince and Landgrave of Hesse-Kassel (full name: Moritz Friedrich Karl Emanuel Humbert Landgraf von Hessen-Kassel) (b. ... Darmstadt Artists Colony is an artist colony located in Darmstadt, Germany. ... Combatants Allied Powers: Russian Empire France British Empire Italy United States Central Powers: Austria-Hungary German Empire Ottoman Empire Bulgaria Commanders Nikolay II Aleksey Brusilov Georges Clemenceau Joseph Joffre Ferdinand Foch Robert Nivelle Herbert H. Asquith D. Lloyd George Sir Douglas Haig Sir John Jellicoe Victor Emmanuel III Luigi Cadorna... Abdication (from the Latin abdicatio disowning, renouncing, from ab, from, and dicare, to declare, to proclaim as not belonging to one), the act whereby a person in office renounces and gives up the same before the expiry of the time for which it is held. ... 1918 (MCMXVIII) was a common year starting on Tuesday of the Gregorian calendar (see link for calendar) or a common year starting on Wednesday of the Julian calendar. ...

In October 1937, Ernest Louis died at Schloß Wolfsgarten, near Darmstadt in Hesse. Although he had not reigned in Hesse for nearly twenty years he received what amounted to a State funeral on November 16, 1937. He was buried in the Rosenhohe, the traditional burial place of the Hesse family. Darmstadt is a city in the Bundesland (federal state) of Hessen in Germany. ... Hesse (German: Hessen) is a state of Germany with an area of 21,110 km² and just over six million inhabitants. ... November 16 is the 320th day of the year (321st in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar, with 45 days remaining. ... Year 1937 (MCMXXXVII) was a common year starting on Friday (link will take you to calendar). ...

Even after his death, however, his childhood wish to not die alone echoed into the next generation. Shortly after his father's death, Prince Louis was to marry Margaret Campbell Geddes in England. His older brother, the Hereditary Grand Duke George Donatus, and the rest of the family planned to take a plane from Hesse to England. However, the plane never reached its destination. George Donatus, along with his wife, Princess Cecilie of Greece and Denmark, their two young sons, Louis and Alexander, his mother Grand Duchess Eleonore, the children's nurse and a family friend died in an accident when their plane crashed near Ostend on their way to his brother's marriage. Cecilie was pregnant with her fourth child at the time of the crash, and the stillborn infant was found among the remains. Their youngest child, Johanna, who was not on the plane, was adopted by her uncle Louis, who was to remain childless. The little girl survived her parents and brothers by eighteen months, dying in 1939 of meningitis. Princess Cecilie of Greece and Denmark (June 22, 1911 - November 16, 1937) was the wife of Hereditary Grand Duke George Donatus of Hesse and the sister of Prince Philip, Duke of Edinburgh. ... Prince Ludwig of Hesse and by Rhine (Ludwig Ernst Andreas), (October 25, 1931 - November 16, 1937), was the eldest son of Georg Donatus, Hereditary Grand Duke of Hesse and Princess Cecilie of Greece and Denmark an older sister of Prince Philip, Duke of Edinburgh. ... Prince Alexander of Hesse and by Rhine (Alexander Georg Karl Heinrich), (April 14, 1933 - November 16, 1937), was the second son of Georg Donatus, Hereditary Grand Duke of Hesse and Princess Cecilie of Greece and Denmark, an elder sister of Prince Philip, Duke of Edinburgh. ... The esplanade with the Thermae Palace, the former Royal Residence and the casino For other uses, see Ostend (disambiguation). ... Princess Johanna of Hesse and by Rhine (Johanna Marina Eleonore), (September 20, 1936 - June 14, 1939), was the third child and only daughter of Georg Donatus, Hereditary Grand Duke of Hesse and Princess Cecilie of Greece and Denmark (sister of Philip, Duke of Edinburgh). ... Meningitis is the inflammation (infection) of the meninges which are the membranes that cover the brain and spine. ...

Children

• Princess Elisabeth of Hesse (1895-1903)
• Stillborn son (1900-1900)
• Georg Donatus, Hereditary Grand Duke of Hesse and by Rhine (1906-1937)
• Prince Louis of Hesse and by Rhine (1908-1968)